Changing the Conversation

The Institute for Excellence in Education is a nonprofit organization founded in the early 1990s by a group of educators with a deep-seated passion for helping all students fulfill their potential whatever their circumstances. Our team includes teachers who have left the classroom to achieve a broader impact and retired educators who continue to contribute to the profession. Our senior coaches have more than 30 years’ experience. We work directly with schools to improve student learning by embedding the most effective practices in every room. Our research-based education model centers on the most important factor under a school’s control: teacher effectiveness. We foster effectiveness through Cognitive Coaching™ and development of the collaborative culture essential to a robust and sustainable professional learning community within the school. This community, with our facilitation, focuses on data, and the ongoing analysis of data generates new teaching strategies and a continuous improvement in student learning. Our approach is focused and methodical. The results are transformative. As Superintendent Scott Bogner of Goodrich Area Schools sums it up:

“That’s what I really love about the Institute. They tap into that first-year teacher in all of us, where we were just going to change the world. They reignite that in teachers, and the focus is on learning and on kids and on the instruction, because the research will tell you that the instruction does matter.”

Our Beliefs

No curriculum, program, or strategy can replace effective teaching.

All deep, sustainable school improvement occurs from the inside out.

The key to transforming educational practice is understanding the influence of identities and beliefs on behavior.

The adults in every school control all the variables necessary to ensure student success.

In schools, high-quality adult conversations are a prerequisite for student success.

In 21st century education, collaboration is not optional; it is essential. It is a skill that must be learned and developed.

Good relationships are fundamental, and they must be built and maintained among students and educators.

Data must consistently guide decisions about teaching and learning.

All decisions, big or small, must place the needs of students above the needs of adults.

Self-directed, reflective educators are pivotal to school success.

Our Conversations

IEE is focused on “changing the conversation.” We want to see society begin celebrating education and holding up master educators, academic success, and educational excellence as pinnacles of achievement. We want to change the public conversation from Olympic athletes to triumphant schools; from recording artists to stellar students; and from superhero movies to superstar teachers. We want to see news stories about what is wrong in our schools become news stories about all that is right in our schools. Changing the conversation starts inside each and every one of us. Robert Marzano’s research tells us the most important factor in a child’s education is teacher effectiveness. With this in mind, educators can regularly re-examine their identities and beliefs, the resources at their disposal, and the role of collaboration and data in their work. When they do, they build their efficacy and empower themselves to impact the lives of children in extraordinary ways. They — and their communities — will find more reasons to celebrate all they do to make a difference. When you change the conversation inside, you change the conversation outside. We are here to help.

Our Impact: Victory Redefined

Grant High School and Lee High School are two schools from our coaches’ portfolio. *Both schools have been identified as Reward Schools and Beating the Odds Schools by the Michigan Department of Education for their rapid improvements in student achievement.

Our Services

Coaching

Institute team members use Cognitive Coaching™ to facilitate continuous improvement. Coaching areas include leadership, instruction, data use, school improvement, culture, professional learning communities, and much more. Our coaches do not evaluate staff or mandate practices; instead, they collaborate with teachers and school leaders to identify and address a school’s needs. School personnel already possess the leadership, skills, and data necessary for success. We simply help develop untapped resources.

Professional Development

Institute trainers stay abreast of current research and best practices to help school community members acquire new skills. We stress facilitation that engages and motivates participants, so they internalize and apply their new learning in the classroom.

Special Education

Meeting the needs of all students in a diverse classroom is a challenge. The Institute’s special education team supports teachers and school leaders in providing differentiated learning environments that satisfy legal requirements while remaining manageable in the classroom.

Instructional Walks

The Institute conducts “instructional walks” that help school personnel view their school through fresh eyes. In the process, school staff gather data about their practices and identify steps toward continuous improvement.